North Macedonian regulator the Agency for Electronic Communications (AEK) has extended the deadline for comments on the award of 5G frequencies in the country.
Interested parties have been asked to comment on the terms and conditions of the spectrum auction, the demand for spectrum, the optimal way of allocating the airwaves, and a deadline consistent with the operators’ return on investment.
This follows requests for an extention from operators Makedonski Telekom (Telekom) and A1 Macedonia (Vip). The new date for input is 20 April, moved from 6 March.
The regulator plans to initially award 5G-suitable spectrum in the 700MHz and 3.6GHz bands in the second half of 2020.
By this time, DTAC plans to have at least some 5G broadband services up and running. The Thai operator, also known as Total Access Communication, plans to launch the services on its newly acquired 26GHz band in selected locations by the first half of 2020, according to local press reports.
The DTAC CEO Sharad Mehrotra has been quoted as saying that his company will start the deployment of its 5G network in the 700MHz band to extend the service to rural areas in the second half of the year.
Thailand’s latest spectrum auction generated over $3.2 billion, far surpassing the government’s original expectations.
